Many Web developers have powerful technical skills, but limited understanding of business processes; conversely, many managers understand business processes intimately, but do not understand how to leverage Web technologies to improve them. This book bridges the gap, giving technical professionals and managers a systematic approach for analyzing their offline processes and identifying the best opportunities to add value through Web technology. Every business offers a goldmine of opportunities for using Web technology to increase revenue and reduce costs -- but every business is different. This is the first book to help you identify your opportunities -- and act on them. Web Business Engineering starts with a quick primer designed to help Web developers think about business the way managers do. Next, it shows how to map business processes and build "value models" that depict their costs and benefits; and, using these maps, identify key opportunities for adding value with Web technologies. Flor shows how to discover innovative ways to use the Web that go far beyond supporting existing business activities.

Nick V. Flor is Professor of Information Systems at Carnegie Mellon University's top-ranked Techno-MBA school, the Graduate School of Industrial Administration, and Director of the FlexMode distance education program. He was the first professor at a Top 20 business school to teach business uses of the Web, and has consulted worldwide on value-added Web business applications.